Jividen estate auction draws festive crowd

Buy This PhotoBRENT CLARK/THISWEEKNEWSAnother item for sale at the auction of Jividen's estate was this $1,000 bill from 1928. It sold for $3,100.

Buy This PhotoBRENT CLARK/THISWEEKNEWSAdam Peterson of Gibbs Auction Service displays a Springfield Model 1868 rifle, believed to have been owned by Grove City settler Hugh Grant. It sold for $225 during the June 28 auction at the estate of the late Ruth Sawyer Jividen. Visit ThisWeekNEWS.com/GroveCity to view more photos from the auction.

This past weekend, a $1,000-bill sold for $3,100 and Andrew Jackson could be seen on a $3-bill.

On Saturday, June 28, Gibbs Auction Service hosted an auction at the historic home of the late Ruth Sawyer Jividen, 4126 Haughn Road.

The atmosphere was somewhere between a picnic and a flea market as people sat and stood on the grass, gathered under tents and walked through the barn to see all the different items up for bid that Jividen had collected during her long life. She died April 14 at the age of 98.

Her former house, bought by the city and planned to become a local history museum, is believed to be the oldest in Grove City. It was built by her ancestor Hugh Grant, the first white man to settle in Grove City.

"This is literally a historic auction," said auctioneer Rob Gibbs. "Wow is the only thing that comes to mind."

The all-day auction began at 10 a.m. with the sale of a Springfield Model 1868 rifle believed to have been owned by Grant. Jividen kept the musket mounted above the fireplace in her kitchen. It went for $225.

Other items for sale included furniture, a sled, a 1958 Chevrolet pickup truck, antique farming equipment, toys, a box of old-time baseball jerseys and a glove, a sword, figurines, outdoor statues, a Hopalong Cassidy thermos and a boot saver -- which came with a pair of white boots to hang up.

Also for sale was various jewelry and old money such as a $1,000 bill from 1928, $500 bills with William McKinley on them, $2 bills and the aforementioned $3 bills featuring Andrew Jackson, which were marked as "Twe Dollars."

Beth Andrews-Wing, a 50-year Grove City resident who went to the auction with her daughter, Lacey, bought a glass cane for $200.

"I saw it online" at the Gibbs Auction Service website, she said, adding that she collects canes. "Is this awesome or what? I don't think you're going to see another one like it."

Gloven Hensel, who lives just south of Grove City, spent $55 on a Grove City Farmers Exchange thermometer, which advertises branches in Mount Sterling, Orient, Galloway and Grove City. Hensel said he figures the thermometer came from the 1960s.

"I collect advertising," he said. "It's in pretty good shape. You don't see very many of them, the local stuff."